Scientists say there are more bacteria in the ocean than stars in the universe, yet little is known about them. A new study outlines the “crazy idea” that led to a project described by one scientist as the “Google database for microbes.”

Instead of dumping it in landfills, organic waste could be used to power cars, heat homes and potentially reduce the need for new landfills in the U.S., according to research by Argonne National Laboratory.

Disaster scenarios near and far are daily considerations for a group of local scientists and engineers. We meet two members of the Global Security Sciences division at Argonne, nicknamed the Doomsday Squad.

Using a process similar to photosynthesis, scientists from Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Illinois at Chicago have converted carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide and hydrogen gas, which can produce methanol and diesel fuels.

The second annual festival promises a treat for the scientifically curious, whether your interests lie in psychology and neuroscience or Chicago's urban wildlife and HBO's popular "Game of Thrones" series.

Nearly 60 years ago, an amateur fossil collector named Francis Tully stumbled upon an incredibly peculiar fossil. The odd jumble of physical attributes – a tube-shaped body, eyes on stalks, and a long, skinny snout with a claw or jaw at the end – looked like they would be more at home in a Dr. Seuss book than in the swamps of Illinois.

Scientists at the University of Chicago are hoping a new, highly sensitive camera they're developing for the South Pole Telescope will reveal new information about the early universe. The camera measures something that's nearly 14 billion years old: radiation left over from the Big Bang.